South Africa’s local government elections scheduled for this year should proceed as planned in October, President Cyril Ramaphosa has said during a campaign rally for local by-elections here.
The president said this after the country’s Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) held a meeting on Thursday to discuss the possible postponement of the October polls following calls from the opposition Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) to do so.
EFF leader Julius Malema said he called for the cancellation of the polls due to the country’s current coronavirus lockdown, which would limit parties to campaign effectively and freely due to crowd restrictions.
But campaigning for next week’s local government by-elections to be held in various council wards of the country, Ramaphosa said suggestions calling for the rescheduling of the October local government elections were not productive.
“Let us go to the polls. For that is when we can choose the African National Congress that will take us forward,” Ramaphosa said.
Turning to the upcoming local by-elections, the president canvassed for votes for the ruling ANC in Durban and “throughout the other six by-elections elsewhere.”
The president said his government had “worked harder” for the people of South Africa during the trying Covid-19 times, emphasising the need to go ahead with local government elections despite the pandemic that has killed over 54,000 people in the country.
NM/jn/APA